Ally Sinclair knows all about the jet-setting, celebrity schmoozing and red carpet treatment that comes with attending the Oscars. But Sinclair isn't an up-and-coming Hollywood starlet. She's the owner of Cocopotamus, a five-year-old, artisanal chocolatier in Albuquerque, N.M.

General Motors engineers knew 10 years ago about a problem with ignition switches in some of its most popular models, but it took until this month to issue a recall. By that time, there had been at least 13 deaths as a result of the issue.